Siena Heights women fall in WHAC championship game

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By Daily Telegram staff

The Daily Telegram - Adrian, MI

By Daily Telegram staff

Posted Mar. 5, 2014 at 2:00 PM

By Daily Telegram staff

Posted Mar. 5, 2014 at 2:00 PM

GRAND RAPIDS

It didn’t matter that the Siena Heights University women’s basketball team knew it was going to the NAIA Division II national tournament when it traveled to Grand Rapids Tuesday night for their first-ever appearance in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference championship game.

Since bowing out in the first round of last year’s national tournament — in their first-ever experience there — the Saints made a commitment to claim the WHAC championship this season.

Well, that didn’t happen, but the Saints gave it their all Tuesday falling to regular-season champion Davenport, 75-74, on Davenport’s home court.

By clinching the regular-season title, second-ranked Davenport was ineligible to receive the automatic bid that goes to the tournament champion, so by making it into the WHAC final, No. 16 Siena Heights knew it would be going to the national tournament March 12-18 in Sioux City, Iowa.

Siena Heights put together one of its best efforts — if not the best — of the season Tuesday night.

Coming down the homestretch, the Saints (25-8) found themselves down 67-56 until a 13-2 run tied the game with 2:32 left to play on Grace Howrigon’s steal and layup.

A pair of Jessie Arnold free throws followed by a Najee Brazzle 3-pointer off the glass got the Saints within two at 69-67. Davenport’s ensuing possession ended when senior Howrigon intercepted a pass and drove the length of the court to hit a layup while being fouled. The layup tied the game at 69-all and her free throw put the Saints ahead, 70-69.

Alex Law connected for Davenport (31-1), but Sierra Calhoun gave Siena Heights the lead back at 72-71 with a short jumper. However, Kayleigh VanKeulen hit her own short jumper with 1:20 to go for a 73-72 Panther lead.

Misses by each team led to each team taking a timeout, with Siena heights getting the ball back with 19.3 seconds left. Calhoun came through again to give the Saints a 74-73 lead until Davenport junior Kia Frazier hit the game-winner with four seconds left. A final Saints possession was knocked away as time ran out.

Calhoun netted 21 points to lead Siena Heights, which will find out today its opening-round opponents when the NAIA announces the schedule for the national tournament. Howrigon (seven assists) and Alexxis Knannlein added 17 points apiece, with Knannlein adding 14 big rebounds.